Steppe and Beyond: Studies on Central Asia – serie

This Pivot updates the ideas of the famous political philosopher from the Italian Renaissance, Machiavelli, for the 21st century, using case studies from the West and from Kazakhstan to demonstrate the utility of Machiavelli's ideas for contemporary political life. In truth, Machiavelli's ideas have never lost their value. Although "Machiavellian" as an adjective tends to describe amoral cynicism in contemporary usage, Machiavelli's ideas were deeply ethical and oriented towards achieving long-term goals. Contemporary readers may be put off by medieval language and examples, misled into believing Machiavelli speaks to a different age; and yet the author here explores how Machiavellian strategy can be of value— ethical as well as practical—in the 21st century.

This book is aimed both at researchers and advanced students of Central Asia, the space of the former USSR, and the foreign policy of Russia and China. The authors adopt a sociological approach in understanding how power structures emerged in the wake of the Soviet collapse. The independencies in Central Asia did not happen as a consequence of a nationalist struggle, but because the USSR imploded. Thus, instead of the elites being replaced, the same Soviet elites who had competed for power in the previous system continued to do so in the new one, which they had to build, adapting themselves and the system to their needs. Additionally, unlike in the immense majority of the independent states that emerged from decolonization, the social movements and capacity to mobilize the people were very weak in the new Central Asian states. For this reason, the configuration of the new systems was the product of a competition for power between a very small number of elites who did not have to answer to the people and their demands. Thus, the new power regimes acquired a strong neopatrimonial component. Analyzing the structure of societies, economies and polities of post-socialist states, this book will be of great interest to scholars of Central Asia, to sociologists, and to scholars of China's rise.

This book is aimed both at researchers and advanced students of Central Asia, the space of the former USSR, and the foreign policy of Russia and China. The authors adopt a sociological approach in understanding how power structures emerged in the wake of the Soviet collapse. The independencies in Central Asia did not happen as a consequence of a nationalist struggle, but because the USSR imploded. Thus, instead of the elites being replaced, the same Soviet elites who had competed for power in the previous system continued to do so in the new one, which they had to build, adapting themselves and the system to their needs. Additionally, unlike in the immense majority of the independent states that emerged from decolonization, the social movements and capacity to mobilize the people were very weak in the new Central Asian states. For this reason, the configuration of the new systems was the product of a competition for power between a very small number of elites who did not have to answer to the people and their demands. Thus, the new power regimes acquired a strong neopatrimonial component. Analyzing the structure of societies, economies and polities of post-socialist states, this book will be of great interest to scholars of Central Asia, to sociologists, and to scholars of China's rise.

This book aims at shedding light on the reasons why the death rates during the pandemic were so high in Central Asia. More specifically, this book proposes analysis on why individuals did not follow the sanitary rules imposed by their respective government and on the role played by misinformation. Secondly, it also examines the impact of Sinophobia in Central Asia and the future challenges this feeling may pose on the authorities in the near future. Lastly, this book also proposes analysis of how the pandemic has contributed to show the inherent vulnerabilities of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan by focusing on their immediate and future political consequences.

This book proposes an interdisciplinary look at the culture of shame in Central Asia and evaluates its role in the regulation of social and political interactions in the region. Contributors demonstrate how 'uyat' relies on patriarchal and hierarchical gender norms that negatively affect women and queer bodies. More specifically, contributors address issues of the taboo of sex education in Kazakhstani schools, favored heteronormativity and its consequences on queer bodies, and the compliance of parents to give their first born to adoption to the husband’s parents in Kyrgyzstan. The book also reflects on how these norms are challenged by young generations. Lastly, the book will also bring a novel reading on local political dynamics by examining the role of shame in Kazakhstani politics as a form of accountability in the absence of genuine political competition. This book will interest scholars of Central Asia, gender theorists, and scholars of post-socialist societies.

This book proposes an interdisciplinary look at the culture of shame in Central Asia and evaluates its role in the regulation of social and political interactions in the region. Contributors demonstrate how 'uyat' relies on patriarchal and hierarchical gender norms that negatively affect women and queer bodies. More specifically, contributors address issues of the taboo of sex education in Kazakhstani schools, favored heteronormativity and its consequences on queer bodies, and the compliance of parents to give their first born to adoption to the husband’s parents in Kyrgyzstan. The book also reflects on how these norms are challenged by young generations. Lastly, the book will also bring a novel reading on local political dynamics by examining the role of shame in Kazakhstani politics as a form of accountability in the absence of genuine political competition. This book will interest scholars of Central Asia, gender theorists, and scholars of post-socialist societies.

This book introduces the policies surrounding legal gender recognition of trans people in Kazakhstan. Generally, the research in this sphere focuses on medical professions, described as gatekeepers or judges deciding who fit the prescriptions of being a woman or a man, and on trans people themselves, who are often portrayed as victims. However, this process is more complex than only describing the interaction of these two groups or by labelling them either as gatekeepers or victims. The project provides a critical approach and attempts to expand our understanding of the process, the dynamics and the actors involved. This study will be of interest to scholars of contemporary Kazakhstan, and of feminism and LGBTQ activism more generally.

This book introduces the policies surrounding legal gender recognition of trans people in Kazakhstan. Generally, the research in this sphere focuses on medical professions, described as gatekeepers or judges deciding who fit the prescriptions of being a woman or a man, and on trans people themselves, who are often portrayed as victims. However, this process is more complex than only describing the interaction of these two groups or by labelling them either as gatekeepers or victims. The project provides a critical approach and attempts to expand our understanding of the process, the dynamics and the actors involved. This study will be of interest to scholars of contemporary Kazakhstan, and of feminism and LGBTQ activism more generally.

The final page in the political history of the Soviet Union was turned on March 19, 2019, when Nursultan Nazarbayev, the last former Chairman of a Soviet Republic who had managed to stay in power following the collapse of USSR, unexpectedly decided to resign. This edited book looks to analyse the political aspects of this event more specifically by trying to understand its political significance for the country’s policies, the prospects of democratisation, the uniqueness of the transition compared with others that have previously occurred in the region and how it may play an influential part in future political transitions in this part of the world.  This book will interest scholars of authoritarian politics, scholars of Central Asia, and those researching the Belt and Road Initiative.

The final page in the political history of the Soviet Union was turned on March 19, 2019, when Nursultan Nazarbayev, the last former Chairman of a Soviet Republic who had managed to stay in power following the collapse of USSR, unexpectedly decided to resign. This edited book looks to analyse the political aspects of this event more specifically by trying to understand its political significance for the country’s policies, the prospects of democratisation, the uniqueness of the transition compared with others that have previously occurred in the region and how it may play an influential part in future political transitions in this part of the world.  This book will interest scholars of authoritarian politics, scholars of Central Asia, and those researching the Belt and Road Initiative.

This book examines Russia’s strong-state dilemma: why Russia repeatedly seeks to overcome crisis, disorder, and failed transition by rebuilding a strong state, yet keeps falling back into a cycle in which restored control does not become stable governing capacity. It argues that post-Soviet political change should be understood not simply as failed democratization, but as a sequence of state-power loss, state rebuilding, and a new center-region balance.Focusing on Russia’s 85 federal subjects from 1991 to 2022, the book draws on an original database of 400+ governors, president-governor meeting transcripts, local media, elite biographies and interviews, institutional histories, formal rules, and electoral data. It shows that Russian state rebuilding followed an uneven strategy: the state did not restore itself everywhere, at every level, or in every sphere at once, but re-entered critical regions, sectors, and institutional junctures selectively and in stages.The book identifies two linked mechanisms: the separation of governors from governance tools, and the disconnect between elite selection and governance capacity. Through Samara, Sverdlovsk Oblast, St. Petersburg, and Moscow, it shows how different regional paths gradually converged into similar center-region structures. Its central conclusion is that the future of Russian state rebuilding depends on whether the state can build formal institutions capable of effectively constraining, organizing, and guiding political elites.

The book is devoted to the problem of the civilizational development of the Kazakhs, as descendants of nomads, at the present stage. The author pays special attention to how the eras of modernity and postmodernity influenced today's Kazakhstan. In this anti-colonial polemic, the author argues in favor of finding the origin of Kazakh nomad culture prior to the colonization of Kazakhstan by imperial Russia; in exploring nomad histories, she seeks to find an alternative path. The book may be of interest to researchers studying the history, politics, sociology, culture of Central Asia and, more broadly, issues of the development of modern civilization.

This book explores masculinities of Tajik men and offers insights on how migrant and non-migrant men maintain their gender identity and adjust their gender practices in the context of transnational labor migration from Tajikistan to Russia. Being in the state of transnational in-betweenness, Tajik non/migrant men and often their spouses need to adapt to gender norms of both Russian and Tajik gender orders despite the orders' very different and at times contradicting gender requirements. Therefore, the book provides the first comprehensive analysis of Tajik non/migrant men's masculinities and their navigation between various forms of masculinity: hegemonic, complicit, marginalized, protest and dominant, thereby performing flexible and strategic masculinity. While focusing on migrant men, this research also highlights the role of women in sustaining their partners' masculine image and the ways how Russian women adjust their gender practices in response to the requirements of Tajik society.

This book explores masculinities of Tajik men and offers insights on how migrant and non-migrant men maintain their gender identity and adjust their gender practices in the context of transnational labor migration from Tajikistan to Russia. Being in the state of transnational in-betweenness, Tajik non/migrant men and often their spouses need to adapt to gender norms of both Russian and Tajik gender orders despite the orders' very different and at times contradicting gender requirements. Therefore, the book provides the first comprehensive analysis of Tajik non/migrant men's masculinities and their navigation between various forms of masculinity: hegemonic, complicit, marginalized, protest and dominant, thereby performing flexible and strategic masculinity. While focusing on migrant men, this research also highlights the role of women in sustaining their partners' masculine image and the ways how Russian women adjust their gender practices in response to the requirements of Tajik society.

The book tells about people who lived in an era of historical cataclysms, wars and revolutions, changes in political formations. The generation of the Kazakh intelligentsia responded to the historical challenge facing the Kazakhs at a turning point in history. These are people born at the end of the 19th century, educated in different countries and united by the idea of overcoming colonial dependence on the Russian Empire.The author aims to form a holistic view of a galaxy of outstanding personalities who, in an important historical period, were able to take responsibility for the people and their future. The history of the country is perceived through the prism of their destinies, views, activities and death.The material of the book is a biographical sketch and covers the history of Kazakhstan in the first third of the twentieth century, until the period of the Great Terror (1937–1938).

The book tells about people who lived in an era of historical cataclysms, wars and revolutions, changes in political formations. The generation of the Kazakh intelligentsia responded to the historical challenge facing the Kazakhs at a turning point in history. These are people born at the end of the 19th century, educated in different countries and united by the idea of overcoming colonial dependence on the Russian Empire.The author aims to form a holistic view of a galaxy of outstanding personalities who, in an important historical period, were able to take responsibility for the people and their future. The history of the country is perceived through the prism of their destinies, views, activities and death.The material of the book is a biographical sketch and covers the history of Kazakhstan in the first third of the twentieth century, until the period of the Great Terror (1937–1938).

This book explores the various ramifications and consequences of the violent civil protests that affected Kazakhstan in January 2022. In this compelling study, the authors examine the underlying social and political tensions that have affected this biggest country of Central Asia, especially since its political transition of 2019 and how the state has managed to justify its actions that led to a return to peace. It also puts in perspective this event in the wider transition affecting Eurasia with the war in Ukraine and how this shift of world politics may impact Kazakhstan that required the support of Russia and the other members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization during these protests. This book will be of value for scholars, journalists and NGOs working on authoritarianism and on Central Asia.

This book explores the various ramifications and consequences of the violent civil protests that affected Kazakhstan in January 2022. In this compelling study, the authors examine the underlying social and political tensions that have affected this biggest country of Central Asia, especially since its political transition of 2019 and how the state has managed to justify its actions that led to a return to peace. It also puts in perspective this event in the wider transition affecting Eurasia with the war in Ukraine and how this shift of world politics may impact Kazakhstan that required the support of Russia and the other members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization during these protests. This book will be of value for scholars, journalists and NGOs working on authoritarianism and on Central Asia.

This book explores the postcolonial discourse and decolonization processes in modern Kazakhstan and beyond. It pays particular attention to such areas as national and religious identity, language, literature, and historical narratives. Despite the fact that the post-colonial theory initially emerged in other regions of the world, it has increasingly been applied in the scholarship on Central Asia. Exploring recent debates on post-coloniality in Kazakhstan, this book is an attempt to bring together two bodies of scholarly literature: scholarship on culture and society in post-Soviet Central Asia and research on post-colonial theory. This volume will be of interest to scholars of Eurasian studies as well as researchers and students of post-colonialism in various contexts beyond Eurasia.

This book explores the postcolonial discourse and decolonization processes in modern Kazakhstan and beyond. It pays particular attention to such areas as national and religious identity, language, literature, and historical narratives. Despite the fact that the post-colonial theory initially emerged in other regions of the world, it has increasingly been applied in the scholarship on Central Asia. Exploring recent debates on post-coloniality in Kazakhstan, this book is an attempt to bring together two bodies of scholarly literature: scholarship on culture and society in post-Soviet Central Asia and research on post-colonial theory. This volume will be of interest to scholars of Eurasian studies as well as researchers and students of post-colonialism in various contexts beyond Eurasia.

This open access book is intended as an original contribution to the conversation on the role and challenges of education in Central Asia to promote social cohesion by looking at Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Examining education challenges within the countries’ wider historical, social, political, and cultural context, the contributions explore existing discourses concerning national identity, religion, language, gender, inclusion, internationalisation of education, and non-state actors through a Political Economy Analysis (PEA) lens. With the understanding that education is both a powerful mechanism of social reproduction in societies and a driver of social change, the book attempts to promote political economy analysis of education as a helpful analytical tool for educational debates and reform agendas in the region and thus will be a valuable resource for policymakers, practitioners, and scholars in this region and beyond.